


A Different Path

by KatzRoad



Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Blood, Gen, Major Character Injury, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-13
Updated: 2020-02-13
Packaged: 2021-02-28 06:07:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,563
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22688977
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KatzRoad/pseuds/KatzRoad
Summary: Separated from her friends because of a cave-in, Rapunzel has to navigate the Great Tree alone until they can regroup again. Along the way, she ends up running into Hector.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 21





	A Different Path

When the dust finally settled, there was a moment of dead silence. Rapunzel blinked once and then looked up from the ground to see a pebble bounce past her. Uncrossing her arms, she glanced over her shoulder and saw the whole passage blocked by a mountain of debris. The princess rose to her feet and stared at the pile of rubble towering over her.

“Nice goin’ Shorty! You caused the whole damn tunnel to cave-in!” a muffled shout came through the rubble. Rapunzel clambered a few steps onto the mountain and then pressed her ear against a rock to listen carefully. That was definitely Hook Foot she just heard; he was the only one who yelled at Shorty like before decking him.

“Is everybody okay? No broken bones? Crushed spines? Raise a hand if you have none of the above.” a muffled voice coughed. The princess recognized that voice immediately. She glanced up to the rocks overhead and then licked her lips.

“Eugene!” Rapunzel called out. There was a pause and for a millisecond, she worried her voice wasn’t loud enough to be heard through the debris. She pressed her ear against the rocks and listened carefully, anxiety making her heartbeat faster.

Rapunzel reeled back for a moment to swallow thickly and then inched over to the left. She reached out to feel the rocks, seeing if there were gaps that allowed her to shout through them. “Eugene? Eugene! I’m over here! I’m all right!” she called out again.

“Rapunzel? Rapunzel!” Cassandra’s voice came through noticeably clearer than Eugene’s and that made Rapunzel guess they were practically on top of each other. She started to move rocks out of the way.

“Cass! Oh I’m so glad to hear your voice! Are you okay?!” the princess shouted in relief. Her hands clawed through dead roots, twisted bramble, and the shattered remains of inscripted plaster. Rapunzel paused when she heard a slight rumble overhead.

On the other side of the mountain of rubble, Cassandra was fast ahead digging through similar debris and was determined to pull her friend out of it. Suddenly, Adira grabbed her and started pulling her back. “What are you doing?” she demanded.

“Thanks to your little friend over there, this whole place is now structurally unstable. If we keep digging like this, the rest might come crashing down on us.” Adira warned. She pointed to the ceiling overhead where cracks stretched longer and wider. They were accompanied by the occasional rumble from somewhere deep.

Cassandra swore underneath her breath and yanked her arm back. “Bad news Raps! Adira says this whole place will cave-in further if we try digging you out!” she shouted.

Adira leaned against a rock. “Princess, it looks you’re going to be on your own for a while. We’ll take another passage and regroup with you later.” she explained.

“How do you know she won’t get lost?” Cassandra asked. She jumped as there was a sudden bang. Looking up, a large wedge could be seen slowly sliding out of place from the ceiling.

Pascal ducked and weaved to avoid being crushed by falling rocks, which grew bigger with each passing minute. He scampered over to Lance, who kneeled down and scooped him into his hands.

“Uh guys? Unless anyone’s looking forward to becoming a pancake, I’d guess we high tail out of here…” Lance said, glancing up to the ceiling.

Adira gritted her teeth and looked to Cassandra and then to rubble beside her. “Listen to me Rapunzel, we don’t have much time over here. A couple of stories up ahead there’s a large chamber that acts like a crossroads to other parts of the Great Tree. Keep going forward and then some left turns, you’ll reach it in no time.” she instructed.

“Be careful princess. The Great Tree can be dangerous and look out floor—” Adira was cut short as Maximus reared up with a cry. The next thing she knew, Cassandra was pulling her out of the way before a jagged piece of rock could smash her.

“Everybody out! Let’s move, move, move!” Eugene hollered. He jumped as the ceiling wedge came loose and crashed to the ground with a thunderous clap. Fidella swooped over and picked him up by the collar with her teeth and galloped as fast as she could.

“Adira!” Rapunzel scrambled down from her spot as the rocks begin to shift and more came tumbling down. The ground trembled as she retreated to a safe distance and watched the ceiling buckle then collapse, kicking up another cloud of dust. She closed her eyes and covered her mouth as the dust swept over her like a wave at the beach.

After a couple of minutes, the ground stopped trembling and the dust begin to settle again. Rapunzel opened her eyes and found herself covered in dust, which made her nose wiggle in disgust. She brushed some off her shoulder and then looked over to see the passage now completely blocked with rubble.

There was no turning back now. Rapunzel clapped her hands together and took a deep breath. “Okay, I’ve been separated from my friends by a cave-in and now I have to navigate the Great Tree alone, which could be potentially dangerous if I’m not too careful.” she slowly summarized.

“Well, that shouldn’t be a challenge for me. I’ve been in tougher situations before…” the princess chuckled, almost nonchalant.

Rapunzel looked ahead once more and then begin to walk. Remembering Adira’s directions, she continued forward, the path occasionally dropping a few steps to slip underneath a giant root and the rising up to over it. She passed intricate carvings and inscriptions that dotted the plaster where it wasn’t shattered, resisting the curious urge to stop and try deciphering their meanings.

She came to her first turn where the path branched into three different archways. It was an obvious choice: the right and middle were blocked with debris while the left remained unscathed, albeit laced in cobwebs. Squeezing through, Rapunzel traveled down a short corridor and then found herself climbing a staircase that spiraled into the unknown.

As she climbed the stairs, Rapunzel couldn’t help but notice how quiet it was on her own. There was no chitchat, no clomping of hooves, no whine of the wheel. No Cassandra trading subtle barbs with Eugene, no Lance trying his best to court Adira (and failing altogether), no Pascal trying to catch bugs from her shoulder. The only thing keeping her company was her own thoughts.

And there was plenty to think about it. There were the black rocks, her hair’s new mysterious power, this journey to the Dark Kingdom, her ‘destiny’ that lie with the Moonstone. She thought about Varian and the look on his face as he was led into a prison cart. Surely her father would keep his promise to provide all the help that poor boy needs.

Climbing further and further, the sound of running water began to drift into Rapunzel’s ears. She paused for a moment to listen and then kept climbing, the sound growing louder and clearer as she went higher. There was another wall of debris to greet her when she reached the top and from there, she found another corridor on her right. The princess could see light in the distance.

Rapunzel wasted no time running towards it and through the light she entered a grand room. The sound of water came from a stream that broke through the rocks, snaking its way across the ground to pool in places before tumbling into some fissures at the far end. A large tree branch was the most prominent feature of the chamber. Like the stream, it broke through the rocks and branched into several crowns before sprouting into the ceiling and then the beyond.

“Woah…” Rapunzel glanced around in wonder. This was definitely going in the journal. She made her way through the room, her attention fixating on the steam and the pools of water dotting the ground. Might as well take a break while she still can.

Kneeling down at one pool of water, the princess rummaged through her satchel and pulled out a canteen. It was almost empty from all the walking and climbing to get there. She eyed the water and it looked safe enough to drink. She could always go the extra mile and boil it when she got the chance.

Once that was topped off, Rapunzel sat it aside and then splashed her face several times. The water felt cool against her skin and she sighed in relief. A handkerchief was pulled from her pocket then and she started to dry herself off accordingly.

A bearcat stood waiting for her when she opened her eyes.

Rapunzel gasped and jumped to her feet. The bearcat stood across the pool and growled intensely at her. She retreated a couple of steps before another growl caused her to turn around and see a second bearcat approaching her from behind. She quickly backed away from both of them, the pair slowly closing in on her.

“Well, well, isn’t this quite a surprise.” Rapunzel heard the branches rustle overhead before a figure dropped right in front of her. She curled her hands into fists and stood her ground as other slowly loomed over her.

“How kind of the glorious ‘Sundrop’ to bestow me of her presence…” Hector grinned.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, welcome to a new story that I'm delighted to have finally got it off the ground. Be warned, the upcoming chapter (or chapters) will have violence and blood, but nothing too majorly extreme.
> 
> The idea behind this story is me more or less wondering what if Rapunzel met Hector and she reluctantly gets drawn into a fight with him and how that would change the events of "Rapunzel and the Great Tree". This is my first time writing Hector and Adira, so I apologize if they doesn't sound as in character as they're supposed to be.
> 
> Feedback is welcomed!


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